Shelf support



NOV. 1, 1949. B Y 2,486,548

SHELF SUPPORT Filed March 2, 1946 BY W 81W Armenia-Ya" Patented Nov. 1, 1949' simLl- SUPPORT Lawrence E. BIEI'OY, Bay Village, Ohio, assignor to Designers for Industry, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio, a

corporation of Ohio Application March 2, 1946, Serial No. 651,514

1 Claim. 1

This invention relates to a means for supporting adjustable shelves, such as those employed in stores, libraries, display cabinets and the like, and has as its principal object the provision of an improved construction which is economical to manufacture, simple to install, and pleasing in appearance.

Another object of the invention is to provide an improved means for supporting adjustable shelves at various heights which is adapted to be easily installed in the corners of a cabinet or a tier of shelving, and which is so constructed that the shelves may be inserted therein and removed therefrom by a simple straight line motion, thus enabling the positions of the shelves to be readily changed with little efiort.

A still further object of the invention is to provide an elongated, transversely curved, shelf supporting member adapted to be installed in a corner of a cabinet or tier of shelves in such a manner that the said member spans the corner and forms a smooth continuous surface with the walls of the cabinet or tier of shelves.

It is also an object of the invention to provide an improved shelf support comprising an elongated, slotted member adapted to be installed in the corner of a cabinet or tier of shelves, and a plate member adapted to be attached to a corner of a shelf for selective engagement in the slots of the elongated member.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description and the accompanying sheet of drawings, illustrating one embodiment of the invention, wherein:

Fig. 1 is a fragmentary perspective view of a vertical section of a cabinet showing the rear portion thereof with the improved shelf support in the rear corner and supporting a shelf at a selected position;

Fig. 2 is a horizontal sectional view through the rear,corner of the cabinet shown in Fig. 1 and illustrating, on an enlarged scale, the manner in which the improved shelf support is engaged by a member attached to a shelf;

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary perspective view of a portion of the cabinet of Fig. 1 illustrating, on

an enlarged scale, one mode of mounting the improved shelf support in the cabinet; and

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary perspective view of one of the adjustable shelves showing the details of the member mounted thereon for engagement with the shelf support.

It is well-known that the shelving in stores, libraries and display cabinets are most eilicient when they may be adjusted to different vertical heights in order to provide flexibility of the spacing between th shelves. To provide for this adjustabillty in installations of this nature, where there are a relatively large number of shelves, it is essential that the supporting means therefor be inexpensive yet easily operated and kept clean. The manner in which the improved shelf supporting means of this invention meets these requirements will be apparent from the following detailed description of one embodiment of the device.

Referring to Fig. 1, I have shown the rear portion of a cabinet, generally designated l0, formed by top H, bottom l2,'back wall l3 and side walls It (only one of which is here illustrated) united together to form a rectangular compartment. This cabinet is disclosed as being constructed from wood, but it is obvious that metal or other suitable materials may be employed if desired, since the cabinet per se does not constitute a part of this invention.

The rear wall l3 and side wall [4 are joined together to form a rectangular corner as illustrated in Figs. 2 and 3, and the faces of the walls 13 and I4, adjacent their point of intersection, are recessed slightly as shown at [5 and IE, to receive the improved shelf support. This shelf support, generally designated I1, is formed from an elongated member, which is transversely curved and is provided throughout its length with a plurality of spaced openings l8, which may be formed as horizontally extending slots as shown. The shelf supporting member I! may be constructed from light gauge metal, plastic, wooden strip or other suitable materials and has a thickness of substantially the same dimension as that of the aforementioned recesses l5 and I6 pro- 'vided in the walls [3 and H.

edges are in engagement with the edges of the aforementioned recesses l5 and It, thus providing a smooth continuous surface from wall I3 to wall [4. The member H, by virtue of its relative thinness and curved configuration, has a slight springiness so that it may be forced into the corner of a cabinet or tier of shelves and re tained therein by its spring-like action which forces its longitudinal edges against the edges of recesses l and I6.

To further assist. in retaining the shelf supporting member I! in proper position, it may be provided with a plurality of openings adjacent its longitudinal edges for receiving screws 19, or other suitable fastening means, which may be inserted into the walls of the cabinet. However, when the construction is as shown in Figs. 2 and 3; i. e., with walls I3 and I4 recessed, the screws l9 are not necessary and may be omitted. It is obvious, however, that the shelf supporting member I! may also be mounted in the corner of a cabinet or tier of shelves without recessing the intersecting walls thereof, in which event screws 19 or equivalent means are essential to retain the member I! in proper position. If mounted in this latter manner, the front surface of the member l1 may form a smooth continuous surface with the corresponding walls of the cabinet or tier of shelves by suitably bevelllng the longitudinal edges of member II or by employing other well-known expedients.

The shelves 20, one of which is shown in supported position in Fig. 1, are adapted for use with the improved shelf supporting member H by rounding the rear corners thereof (in the manner shown in Figs. 3 and 4) to substantially conform with the forward surface of the member H. A plate 2| is then attached to the under surface of the shelf 20 at substantially the midpoint of the curved corner by means of screws 22 or other fastening means, passing through suitable holes in the plate. The plateZl extends beyond the curved corner of shelf 20, and this extended portion has a substantially triangular configuration with the sides thereof intersecting at right angles. The thickness of plate 2| is slightly less than the width of slots I8 in member I1, and the width of plate 2| is slightly less than.

the length of the said slots. Hence, when it is desired to position a shelf 20 at a desired height, the plates 2| (there being one on eachrear corner of the shelf) are inserted in corresponding openings it of the shelf supporting members II, which are located in the rear corners of the 4 cabinet, by a simple, straight line movement of the shelf in a horizontal plane. The forward corners of the shelf 20, which are not illustrated, may be adjustably supported by any conventional means.

It will now be apparent that the construction of my improved shelf supporting means is such that it may be economically manufactured and easily installed. Moreover, after the shelf support has been installed, the resulting cabinet is easier to clean than heretofore, because the rear corners thereof are now rounded and there are no projections where dust or other foreign matter may lodge, which is an important consideration in all types of shelving or cabinets.

While I have disclosed a preferred embodiment of the invention in considerable detail, by way of example, I do not wish to be confined to the exact construction illustrated but desire to cover all modifications coming within the spirit and scog: of the invention as defined in the appended c a Having .thus described my invention, I claim:

A shelf support comprising a pair of upright walls defining a corner, the inner'faces of the walls being recessed adjacent the corner formed thereby to provide longitudinally extending shoulders, and an elongated, transversely curved, upright member spanning said corner with the longitudinal edges thereof positioned in said recesses and abutting said shoulders, the depth of the recesses being equal to the thickness of said upright member so that the walls and upright member provide a smooth continuous surface without corners, the said upright member being provided with a plurality of vertically spaced openings adapted to receive corner portions of the shelves to be supported.

LAWRENCE E. BLAZEY.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,326,507 Welch, Jr. Aug. 10, 1943 

